Guest Post: A Message from Anna Maria Chávez

Anna Maria Chávez, CEO, Girl Scouts of the USA, has some exciting news to share about our commitment to ensuring all girls have access to the outdoors.

Today, I had the incredible opportunity to join
President Obama, Interior Secretary Sally Jewel, and other federal park
officials in announcing a major new White House initiative to ensure every
fourth grader in America has access to a national park. The “Every Kid in a
Park” program, which is part of a buildup to the 100th anniversary of the
National Park Service in 2016, will give every fourth-grade student and their
family free access to national parks and other public lands for a year.

With more than 80 percent of American families
living in urban areas, the program will ensure that every child in America has
an opportunity to enjoy the beauty of nature and the educational opportunities
offered by our National Park System. It is truly amazing for Girl Scouts, as a
leader in the outdoor space, to have the opportunity to partner with the White
House on this important initiative.

For over a century, providing girls with access
to the outdoors, fostering resiliency, helping girls build vital skills such as
problem solving, and encouraging a healthy, active lifestyle, have been
cornerstone elements of the Girl Scout mission. To stand with the President to
announce this initiative is a truly awesome recognition of the power of our
Movement to help girls develop the skills they need to be the leaders of
tomorrow.

Girl Scouts is committed to continuing to
provide girls with outdoor opportunities, a commitment we renewed for our new
triennium as we prepare to roll out new outdoor badges and programs. This recognition as a leading authority on
youth and the outdoors is all thanks to the work you do every day to provide
girls with unique outdoor adventures, from camping, to community recycling
activities, to Gold Award projects centered on sustainable energy.

Enjoy this moment and please share with your
colleagues and community partners as we continue to work together to make sure
every girl has a chance to experience everything that nature has to offer!

We're Girl Scouts of the USA
We're 2.6 million strong—1.8 million girls and 800,000 adults who believe in the power of every G.I.R.L. (Go-getter, Innovator, Risk-taker, Leader)™. Since 1912, we’ve built girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place.